Wipeout | Book 4 | Overdrawn

by Richards, E. S.

  “I don’t know, Dante,” Austin sighed. “But I know I can’t leave him here. I’m sorry. I just can’t.”

  Walking away from his husband, Austin felt his marriage beginning to crack, but he couldn’t bring himself to look back. He loved Dante more than he had ever loved another partner in his life, but he knew that if he was ever forced to choose, there wouldn’t even be a question. Every day when he had woken up outside of Poughkeepsie since the collapse, there had been one face which had pushed him to get out of bed and keep fighting. Bowie had been his guiding light throughout it all, encouraging him to keep going and never to give up. Bowie was his everything. Even if it meant he had to fight Dante over it, Austin was bringing Bowie beyond the city limits with him and no one was going to be able to stop him.

  “Hey,” Samuel greeted Austin as he walked back into the house, finding his friend sitting on the couch with his head in his hands. “Are you okay? What’s happened?”

  Austin sniffed and lifted his head, wiping the few tears which rested on his cheeks and nodding. “Yeah, sorry,” he flashed a weak smile. “How were the boys, everything okay with them?”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Samuel replied. “They’ll be fine – I’ll miss them, but they’re with their parents.”

  Austin nodded, disappointed he hadn’t also had the chance to say goodbye to Mason and Noah but the limited time Jeff had granted them to prepare hadn’t left enough time for that. The clock was ticking as it was, the hour of their departure now less than fifteen minutes away.

  “Everything okay here?” Samuel asked. There was tension in the room, the rest of the house quiet and still, like people were trying to avoid one another. “Have you made a decision about Bowie?”

  Sniffing once more, Austin stood up and tried to pull himself together a bit more. He knew that if this was going to work, he needed to stand by his decision and be confident about everything it brought with it. He smiled at his friend and walked over to him.

  “Bowie is coming with us,” Austin declared. “I’m not sure about Meghan yet, but I can’t leave my son behind. Bowie is going to come with us and we’re just going to have to figure out a way to make it work.”

  “I’m coming too.” Meghan’s voice carried from the staircase, causing both Austin and Samuel to turn in that direction. Meghan stood at the bottom, with Dante and Bowie just behind her. They all had their bags packed and were ready to leave, their expressions a mixture of grit and apprehension. Austin didn’t know what to say.

  “Are you sure? Meghan, I don’t want to force you out of your home.”

  “You haven’t left me much of a choice, Austin,” Meghan replied, a note of hostility in her voice. “If my son and grandson are both leaving, then you can bet your last buck I’m not going to stay here without them. If they’re both going, then I am, too.”

  Austin paused for a moment and looked at Meghan and Dante on the staircase. He could tell by Meghan’s tone that she wasn’t happy about his decision, but he was also thankful that Dante wasn’t fighting him and that Bowie didn’t have to suffer through indecision and uncertainty. Choosing to ignore his mother-in-law’s upset, Austin smiled and walked over to them.

  “Alright then, I guess we’re all going, then. Are you ready, little man?” Austin turned his attention to Bowie, helping his son navigate around Meghan and down the stairs into his arms. “Are you ready to go on an adventure?”

  After the announcement that all five of them would be leaving together, Austin and Samuel barely had time to check their bags had everything in them before a banging rattled the front door of Meghan’s home and Jeff forced himself in, followed by a few others.

  “Time’s up,” Jeff bellowed as he entered. “I don’t want any of you in my city any longer than you have to be.”

  “Alright Jeff,” Dante replied confidently. “We’re ready. You don’t have to make a song and dance about everything.”

  “What did you say?” Jeff squared up, face to face with Dante. Jeff was clearly still riled up. Dante had spent weeks faking a friendship with Jeff. It wasn’t really a surprise that Jeff had a particular dislike for him.

  Austin stepped in between the two men, shoving them apart.

  “It’s okay,” Austin held his hands up. “We’re sorry – we’re leaving. We’re ready. Let’s go.”

  Jeff glared at Austin for a moment, then turned and walked away. He waved his hand over his shoulder as he made a beeline for the front door. The men with him stepped forward and ushered Austin, Dante and everyone else out of the house. As Dante walked past Jeff, he couldn’t help but feel it was the best thing they were all leaving the city, after all. Jeff already had too much control and it only seemed like that would increase as the days went on. Maybe being thrown out of Poughkeepsie was actually a blessing in disguise.

  However, once they were on the other side of the barriers, Dante struggled to continue to see things like that. Many of the city residents had come out from their homes and put down their daily tasks to see them escorted out of the city. It wasn’t hard to figure out who supported Jeff and who was nervous about the decision. Some stood and cheered, some looked at the ground and avoided eye contact. People that Dante had known his entire life turned away from him or spat at his feet.

  They were marched through the city like pariahs, showing the people of Poughkeepsie what could happen to them if they dared to disobey the rules. When they reached the barricades at the city limits to the south – a different route to the way Austin and Samuel had entered several nights earlier – they found another crowd had gathered there to boo and jeer as they were guided around and over the blockades, parts of them moved in places to allow the five of them to pass through.

  Austin was the last one to leave the city, pausing just before he stepped through the gap in the wire fence that had been made for them. This was it. He had fought for weeks to get back into Poughkeepsie for what had wound up being a considerably shorter visit than he could’ve ever imagined. Poughkeepsie might not have been a proper stopping point for him and his family, but it had served its purpose. He had Bowie back by his side and his family was whole again – there were some creases to iron out, but it was nothing that they couldn’t fix. The most important thing was that they were alive, they were together and nothing could take that away from him.

  And so, it was with a smile that Austin stepped outside of the city of Poughkeepsie once more. He looked back and nodded, thinking to himself that he really, truly never wanted to see that place again.

  Chapter 13

  “There are plenty of cars left here, at least,” Samuel commented with a smile, trying to keep morale up. “It shouldn’t take us long to get a full tank and be on our way.”

  “Yeah,” Austin agreed. He and Samuel were in much higher spirits than Dante and Meghan were. Bowie followed along silently, the young boy unsure what to make of the situation just yet. “Why don’t you sit down and rest for a bit,” he said to Meghan. The older woman struggled the most out of their group from the short distance they’d walked so far. “Have something to eat – I’m happy to scope out the area and see what’s what. It shouldn’t take long.”

  “I’ll come with you,” Samuel added, much preferring to stay close to Austin rather than become a part of the strange family ambiance that Dante and Meghan had going on.

  Since being thrown out of Poughkeepsie, the five of them had stuck to the road and continued to walk south, away from the city. Meghan and Dante had talked in hushed tones while Austin entertained Bowie, leaving Samuel with time to reflect on what had happened and gauge the new group dynamic that he was a part of.

  It was obvious that Meghan wasn’t happy to be leaving her home in Poughkeepsie behind. Samuel had quickly figured out that it had been Austin’s overpowering desire to bring Bowie with them that had won out. He tried to put himself in either one of the father’s shoes, but it was difficult for Samuel to pick a side. He could see the rationality behind Bowie remaining in Poughkeepsie with Megha
n, in an environment that was safer for a small child. On the other hand, he could see that after everything Austin had been through to reunite with his son, how difficult it would’ve been for him to walk away from him. Samuel also figured that Poughkeepsie might not remain that safe for very much longer. Jeff’s leadership was likely to cause more than a few rifts within the city the longer it was left to fester.

  All of that had made for a bit of a turbulent start to their journey. They had walked for about an hour down Route 9 until they’d reached a rest stop -- a couple of diners and a run-down shopping mall. There were still about fifteen or twenty cars parked in the lot there and with diners on site, there was hope for some salvageable food. It made sense for the five of them to stop for a break, while Austin and Samuel checked the cars for gas and hopefully, one that could help speed up their journey south.

  “You alright pal? Is everything okay with Dante?”

  “Yeah,” Austin replied breezily, “it’ll be fine. We’re always a bit like this after some time apart, it won’t last. So long as Bowie is okay, that’s the main thing.”

  Austin did his best to quickly move the conversation on from his marriage to his son, reluctant to talk to Samuel or anyone about what was happening between him and Dante. He hated to lie to Samuel. He and Dante normally never argued, their relationship one of the most easy-going things in Austin’s life. He appreciated that what was happening was hard on his husband. Austin also knew he had to keep Bowie at the forefront of his mind, and he didn’t regret anything he had done so far. He just hoped this wouldn’t create a rift between him and Dante. He knew he should talk to his husband sooner rather than later, but with everyone else around, this wasn’t exactly a prime opportunity to fix things up again.

  Both men were equipped with plastic tubing and empty canisters as they approached the first set of parked vehicles together, preparing to inspect their engines and see if there was any gas left in the tanks. “Who would’ve thought we’d be back like this so soon, eh?”

  “I know,” Austin replied as he began tapping the first tank for fuel. “And now we’re heading back to the city. We’ve practically come full circle already.”

  Austin laughed and shook his head, sharing Samuel’s surprise at how things had worked out. All the sweat and toil they’d put into reaching Poughkeepsie only to be thrown out after no more than a few days. At least they hadn’t left alone. It had been far from a wasted trip for Austin.

  “You think going back to New York is definitely the best idea?” Samuel asked, cautious of going back to a place that had been so difficult to leave in the first place.

  “Yeah, I do,” Austin nodded, pausing mid-sentence to suck on his plastic tube and get the gas moving out into his canister. He coughed and spat on the ground to get the taste out of his mouth as quickly as possible, the fuel beginning to flow through into the canister. Once it was draining properly, Austin looked up and continued. “We don’t really have anywhere else we can head to realistically – at least we both have places in the city and people there that we know. It’s home and I figure it’s better to be in a familiar place than out in the wilds, don’t you?”

  “I guess so,” Samuel agreed eventually, imagining being back in his apartment in New York. He could only guess at what the city would be like now, but he couldn’t deny he wanted to check in on his parents and make sure they were both still coping. Long Island likely wouldn’t be hit as badly by the riots and destruction as the rest of New York, but that was merely Samuel’s own assumption. He had no idea if there was any logic behind it, his wishful thinking making the decision for him. “I wonder what it’ll be like.”

  “Can’t be any worse than where we’ve been already,” Austin replied with a laugh. “I think this one’s done,” he then added, tapping the car and removing his tube from the tank. “Come on, let’s get a move on so we can get on the road before it gets dark. I’d rather only drive through the day.”

  Following his friend’s instructions, Samuel also moved on and stepped away from Austin, moving to his own vehicle so they could work separately and get the job done quicker. Thoughts about New York swam around in his head as he tried to imagine going back there – it wouldn’t be a long wait, realistically. Once the canisters were full and they found a drivable vehicle, the journey wouldn’t take more than a few hours. To think that he could be back in his apartment in under a day was surreal, Samuel felt so detached from that place that it was hard to picture.

  It wasn’t just his apartment that he felt detached from though, but more the previous life he had led from there. Thinking back to walking down Wall St. every day and sitting in his office high above the people below, organizing plans and managing marketing budgets were memories from another lifetime. Samuel had been a classic businessman. His sole focus was his work and his accomplishments in that field. It wasn’t a bad life to lead, but he realized now it had made him so narrowminded and cut off from the rest of the world. The collapse had opened his eyes to what he could have been doing with his life, what he could’ve had. It had changed Samuel and he knew that even though he may be going back to the same city, he would be going back a very different man with some very different morals and goals for the future.

  Less than an hour later, Samuel and Austin walked back into the diner where they’d left Dante, Meghan and Bowie and found the three of them tucking into a large bowl of pasta.

  “Hey little man,” Austin greeted his son with a grin, hoisting the child up onto his hip as Bowie reached up to his father. “This looks good – managed to find some food, did you?”

  “Yeah,” Dante replied, “there’s tons of dry stuff in the back. We should stock up before we head out. How did it go finding a ride?”

  “All sorted out,” Austin smiled. “We can finish eating and then we’re good to go if that works for you?”

  “Sure,” Dante nodded. “Let me get you both a bowl.”

  Samuel stood by and accepted a bowl from Dante, leaning across the table where Meghan still sat to fill it up. He lingered awkwardly beside her for a second, unsure whether to sit down in the seat previously occupied by Bowie or find another one. All the tables were set up for four people so he immediately felt like the outsider, trying to decide what to do until Meghan patted the space next to her and indicated for him to sit.

  “I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced yet,” she said with a smile as Samuel sat down. “Sorry about that – it’s all been a bit hectic since you arrived.”

  “Oh, please, don’t apologize,” Samuel replied. “I’m sorry about everything that happened – you’ve got to know that we never intended for things to end up like this.”

  “I know,” Meghan nodded. “It was all just a bit,” she paused, struggling to find the words. There wasn’t really an easy way to explain how everything had made her feel. Each day since Austin and Samuel burst into her house had somehow been crazier than the next and it was hard to even understand her own emotions, let alone explain them to someone else. “Whatever,” she sighed, giving up on the conclusion. “Either way it’s nice to meet you, Austin speaks very highly of you.”

  “Does he?” Samuel questioned with a grin, pleased to hear of the high estimations his friend carried for him. “We’ve certainly been through a lot together,” he admitted. “Austin is a great guy – he loves those two more than I ever would’ve thought possible.”

  “Do you have a family back home?”

  “Not really,” Samuel shook his head. “My parents are in New York – Long Island – but my sister isn’t in the country anymore and I’ve never had a family of my own.”

  “Oh,” Meghan offered Samuel a sympathetic smile, her eyes then drifting to Dante and Austin who were speaking to one another on the other side of the diner, Bowie still in Austin’s arms.

  Samuel’s gaze followed Meghan’s and the two of them were silent for a moment, watching the small family unit rekindle and smiles eventually blossom on both Austin and Dante’s faces.
As the two men leaned in toward each other and Dante put a hand on Austin’s cheek, Samuel looked away to afford them some privacy. He and Austin had shared almost everything in the last couple of weeks, but Samuel understood that now he needed to start stepping away and letting Austin’s real family reform closely around him.

  “Did I hear Dante say there’s a decent supply of dried food back there?” Samuel asked Meghan, distracting them both. “We should definitely stock up before we get going. Who knows what the situation in the city is going to be like.”

  “Was it bad when you left?”

  Samuel faltered as he stood up, not wanting to lie to the woman or give her false hope, but at the same time not wanting to fill her with dread over what was to come. “It wasn’t great,” he shrugged in the end. “I think the authorities were trying to get things under control, whether they managed it or not is another question. I’m sure it’ll be okay though – so long as we don’t get locked up on entry, that’s a step up for me.”

  Meghan laughed and Samuel took the opportunity to excuse himself, walking into the kitchen of the diner to see what was there. The place was still pretty well stocked up. It hadn’t been raided or looted since the collapse. Practically everywhere else he and Austin had gone – aside from the camp in the forest – had been torn apart as people searched for supplies. This was a great find and with his reservations about the state of New York City, Samuel knew they should take full advantage of it while they had the chance.